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On February 7, AKA “tomorrow,” your PlayStation Network account is having a bit of a procedure done. At least it’s one you don’t have to pay for — an update to Sony’s Terms of Service, User Agreement and Privacy Policy will change the name of your account from a “PlayStation Network” account to one on the “Sony Entertainment Network.” See? All cosmetic. But there are a few more changes in the ToS that you’ll want to keep an eye on. Here they are, provided by Sony in convenient list form. New terms for parents of minor, subaccount holders regarding the limitations of chat parental controls. Your reacceptance of the Terms of Service and User Agreement and Privacy Policy affirms your consent to the sharing of your child’s data that may occur if your child utilizes certain communication functionalities on PlayStation devices such as PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita systems. New

SEGA officially announced the second episode of Sonic the Hedgehog 4 today, which will be released sometime during the 2012 that is rapidly speeding toward us (much like Sonic himself). In addition to Microsoft and Sony’s online stores, Episode II will come to Apple’s App Store, the Android Market and Windows Phone 7′s iteration of Xbox LIVE. The physics engine has been reworked from the ground up, and new character animations have been added. Speaking of things that are new — Tails is making an appearance (finally). “After twenty years in action, it’s clear that Sonic hasn’t slowed down one bit,” said Haruki Satomi, Senior Vice President of Digital Business at SEGA of America. “The first entry in the Sonic 4 saga was a major success. We’ve listened to the fans and been hard at work making sure we recapture that same spirit of fun in Episode II. We hope

Just in case you’re still on the fence about Bethesda’s RAGE, a demo’s been released on Xbox LIVE to help you figure out if you want the title, released in early October. The Ghost Clan, a cult of murderous fanatics, has infiltrated the waterworks beneath the town of Wellspring with plans to poison the water supply. You are the only one with the weapons, talent and courage to stop them. While in Wellspring, you can also meet the townsfolk, try your hand in games of skill and chance, peruse the wares of the local vendors or hit the Speedway for some racing. This will come in handy this Friday, when the game is available for a special price at select retailers — $29.99. Hooray, Black Friday! Follow

If you miss the games from “back in the day” where an RPG was guaranteed to take over 100 hours to complete, looks like Square Enix is bringing some games to PSN just for you as part of their “Winter of RPGs.” Sounds like the perfect time to curl up with a blanket and a controller, right? First, Chrono Cross, which is releasing on November 8. The Chrono Trigger sequel has you traveling across dimensions to find the Frozen Flame. After that, it’s time for Final Fantasy V, releasing November 22. Following that release, Final Fantasy VI comes up to bat on December 6. How chronological, right? Follow

I love Mattel’s game Apples to Apples. In the boardgame, one player picks a word and the others place cards from their hand that they think the player would associate most closely to that word. Or in the cases I’ve played, what that person is most likely to pick based on personal preferences. For example, anything Disney always wins when it’s my turn to pick. Apples to Apples is a great conversation starter and great for families or adults. Apples to Apples is now coming to console and social networks. It will be released first on Xbox Live and Playstation Network this winter for 800 MS Points or $9.99 on PSN. What’s interesting is there is a single player mode included. Not sure why anyone would want to play this as a single player. Online and local modes support up to six players. New to the game are Golden Apple

Konami’s Zombie Apocalypse: Never Die Alone is the sequel to the previous downloadable title (which was the same, minus the subtitle). In this trailer, we see the new squad-based gameplay…in the form of a news broadcast. Well, that’s an interesting way to do it. At least with this development, the title’s truer than ever. Hard to die alone when you’re in a squad. Zombie Apocalypse: Never Die Alone hits PSN on October 25, and Xbox LIVE Arcade on October 26. Follow

Rather than taking a whole week to tell us this time, Sony’s Chief Security Officer, Philip Reitinger, has alerted the world to an attempted breach of the PlayStation Network. Someone appears to have taken a large number of password and ID pairs and used those to attempt to access PSN accounts. By the numbers, less than one-tenth of one percent of PSN/SEN/SOE accounts have been affected — 93,000 accounts around the world were cracked as a result of this method — and all accounts that were hit during this attack have been locked. Upon logging in, you’ll have to change your PSN password (again), or if it was your SOE account that got hit, it’s been temporarily turned off and you’ll have to verify your identity before it can be turned on. In his post, Reitinger noted that, “if you have a credit card associated with your account, your credit

Ever thought about what it’s like for the characters in your games? What’s it like when you come along and help them save the day? (Unless you’re some kind of a sadist and you purposefully ruin the day for them and then WHO ARE YOU and why are you here?) Sony has, apparently. Or at least they hired someone who has. The end result? Pretty touching, actually. Watch it here: (Someday, we’ll get the same commercial with “Michelle,” right? Right?) Follow

EA and Sony have done something we’re not really into — taken away our right to a lawsuit. And it’s right there in their EULAs. You know, the documents you don’t actually read that stand between you and playing something. Those wordy things. Did you know you can opt out of those particular clauses by just sending a letter? It’s annoying, I know, but it gets the job done. Too bad there’s no way to do it all online. Or is there? Gamers Opt Out is a new site that will send paper letters to these companies on your behalf. “Gamers Opt Out is a collective of gamers who are sick of absurd EULAs from game companies. These EULAs have clauses preventing class-action lawsuits, though you can opt out of the clauses by sending a letter. We want to make it easier for everyone to opt out because Sony, EA,

As of yesterday, Sony Online Entertainment and Overkill have shifted FPS Payday: The Heist‘s release date to sometime later this month. Sony has extended preorders accordingly. Of course, if you were expecting this as the end reward for your PlayStation Network PLAY purchases, that’s still in effect. You just…have to wait a little longer, now. What’s the reason for the delay? “Ensuring overall game quality.” That’s still pretty weird to announce it the day before release, though. How’s about you…not do that next time? Follow